One
of our regular readers recently sent us e-mail complaining about sand being
extracted illegally by a local company in the area of San José.

According
to our reader, the company Es Pi Ver started to extract sand from the area known
as Puig de s’Avenc about six months ago, shortly after the owner of a house
situated on the land passed away.

The
house, an old Ibicencan style finca, is now in ruins and the land has been totally
transformed as a result of the excavations.

A
part from destroying the environment, on further investigation it was discovered
that this activity is totally illegal.

The
head of the police in Ibiza, Ángel Marí, owns Can Berri, one of the most important
sand distributors on the island, and his wife Sofía Álvarez is the administrator
of the above mentioned sand extracting company Es Pi Ver, S.A.

For
the past several months, machinery has been working flat out to extract as much
sand as possible from this new source in San José.

After
repeated complaints from the neighbours about the destruction and the noise
of the site, the Town Hall of San José decided to start investigating the case.

They
soon were to discover that Es Pi Ver, S.A. did not have a licence to extract
sand from Puig de s’Avenc.

Town
Hall officials interrupted the activity in the sandpit on Monday 10th
December, when all work had to be stopped as the company lacked the official
permits.

According
to the law of building discipline, the extraction or movement of soil requires
authorization from the local Town Hall. But despite the Town Hall terminating
the work, the locals tell me that the diggers were back to work the next day
in Puig de s’Avenc with more determination that ever.

This
time the digging started in the early hours of the morning and carried on non-stop
until night-time.

Despite
the neighbours complaints, Ángel Marí and the Town Hall both denied that any
sand had been extracted from the area on that day.

Ángel
Marí said: “There was no digging done on Tuesday 11th December, the
only work that was done was to restore the area”.

Although
at first it may have seemed that the Town Hall of San José defended Ángel Marí’s
irresponsible actions, the councillor of Construction, José Marí Ribas, explained
that the company had applied for a licence several months ago because they wanted
to repair the banks and plant carob trees but nothing was ever said about extracting
sand.

In
response to the company’s licence application, the Town Hall of San José told
me that a licence is not necessary for agricultural activities but, as José
Marí Ribas says, “turning Puig de s’Avenc into a sandpit is not an agricultural
activity”.

The
Town Hall is now deciding what legal action should be taken against the company.

This
isn’t the only sandpit that has been exploited by Es Pi Ver, S.A. over the years.
According to Ángel Marí, since 1993 the company has extracted sand from 17 different
locations in San José and all without a licence from the Town Hall.

It
has since been discovered that the law of natural areas protects some of these
sites and one of them is situated at the bottom of sa Talaia, the highest mountain
on the island.

The
only sandpit owned by Ángel Marí no longer has any sand and for the past eight
years he has had agreements with several property owners to extract sand from
their land, which then is transported by lorry to Can Berri and sold.

The
police commissioner Ángel Marí admitted that Es Pi Ver, S.A. hasn’t got a licence
to extract sand from Puig de s’Avenc or any other location and he doesn’t believe
it’s necessary. He says: “The Plan for Quarry Activity in the Balearics, the
Law of Mines from 1973 and the Law of Rustic Soil all indicate that no licence
is necessary for the kind of work that is being done at Puig de s’Avenc”.

When
asked why the Town Hall officials had stopped work on Puig de s’Avenc’s sandpit
if no licence is required, Ángel Marí responded: “We can’t expect the local
politicians to know everything can we?”

Marí
defended his company saying, “Es Pi Ver is the only company on the island that
keeps an official record of all the sand extractions in different locations”.
He also added: “The only sand that has been extracted from Puig de s’Avenc is
that left over from the work we are doing to restore the area”.

Thanks
to our reader and other local residents who alerted the press about this case,
it has now been brought to the attention of the local officials who will be
taking action against this illegal activity that is putting the natural beauty
of the island in grave danger.

CHRISTMAS IN IBIZA

Christmas
is just around the corner and the island of Ibiza is looking pretty abandoned.

During
the Christmas period a lot of Ibiza residents, who have originated from all
over Europe, leave the island to reunite with family and friends.

The
local travel agents have told me that despite the 11th September
tragedies Ibiza residents are sticking to their travel plans.

“Bookings
haven’t really dropped in comparison to last year but we have noticed that Ibiza
residents are choosing safer holiday destinations”, said a travel agent employee.

The
head of holiday sales for the leading travel company Abratours, Laura Añibarro,
says: “Long distance holidays to places like Cuba or Santo Domingo are still
taboo. A lot of people feel apprehensive about being on an aeroplane for several
hours after what happened in America”.

Most
Ibicencans used to spend the festive season in places like Mexico, Egypt or
Morocco but ski resorts seem to be this year’s choice for those who want a holiday
in the snow.

“Andorra,
Pyrennees and Sierra Nevada are the most popular destinations. We have noticed
that the tour companies have taken advantage by putting up their prices for
these resorts”, said Laura Añibarro.

Other
parts of mainland Spain, such as Galicia and Asturias, have also turned into
popular holiday destinations.

According
to the travel agents, New York used to be one of the most popular places for
Christmas and New Year but, after the tragedies, very few people are choosing
the Big Apple as a place to spend their holidays.

Snow
definitely won’t be scarce at the ski resorts in the mainland as for the past
two weeks rain, snow and sleet have caused many problems, especially in the
north of Spain and Cataluña.

Fortunately
Ibiza escaped this bout of bad weather although the island did see a couple
of days of heavy rain.

The
closest Ibiza will come to seeing snow this winter is at the newly inaugurated
ice rink in Calle Murcia. The biggest attraction for the Christmas season opened
its doors to the public on Tuesday 18th December, three days later
than planned due to technical difficulties.

The
new ice skating rink was filled with 500 children from different schools on
the first day to have a go on the ice.

The
councillor of Fiestas, Sandra Mayans; the councillor of Culture and Environment,
Fanny Tur; the councillor of Sports, Roque López; the councillor of Social Well-being,
Santiago Pizarro; and the Lord Mayor of Ibiza, Xico Tarrés, all attended the
inauguration and tried out the ice for themselves.

The
rink will remain open every day from 9:30 to 13:30 and 16:30 to 21:30 hours.
On Friday and Saturday the ice rink will also open from 10 o’clock to midnight
so that adults can enjoy the rink, as most of the other days will be devoted
to groups of school children.

The
Lord Mayor said that the ice rink will remain open to 18th January
2002, three days later than planned to make-up for the first three days that
were lost.

Xico
Tarrés has also asked for patience as only a small number of people are allowed
on the ice at one time and, as expected, everyone wants a go on the new ice
rink.

Christmas
is also a time for giving and sharing with others. At this time of year most
of the island’s charity organizations are in full swing with their different
events, collecting money and gifts for the most needed.

The
first event of this year’s festive season was the annual fair celebrated by
Ibiza and Formentera’s Association Against Cancer in Ibiza’s Fair and Exhibition
Centre on Sunday 16th December.

More
than 100 volunteers worked continuously for nine hours making sure that the
fair was a success.

The
Cancer Association wishes to thank all the different businesses and volunteers
that participated in the fair and those who donated gifts, which were later
auctioned to the visitors.

The
president of the association, José Colomar, and the vice-president, Pamela Deaking,
expressed how pleased they were with the amount of people who attended 2,000
in total as well as 200 children and several artists who participated in a special
show at the Exhibition Centre.

Between
the auction and the raffles, the Association Against Cancer collected a total
of seven million pesetas.

The
fashion company Adlib is also holding a special Christmas fashion show for children
in need.

All
proceeds from the fashion show, which also includes a Christmas buffet and a
live performance from the famous soprano Gloria Phoenix, will be donated to
the UNICEF charity for children and the APNEEF (Charity Association for People
with Special Needs).

The
show will commence at 9 o’clock on Friday 21st December in Ibiza’s
Fair and Exhibition Centre.

The
tickets are priced at 5,000 pesetas to include dinner or 1,000 pesetas for the
show.

The
Red Cross is also working to make Christmas a nice time for everyone, including
the poor.

For
the past month Red Cross volunteers have been busy collecting toys so that every
child in Ibiza will have a present to open on Christmas morning.

These
are just some of the many charitable events taking place during the holiday
season so don’t forget to support as many as you can.

Thanks
to all the charity organizations on the island who make us realize that Christmas
isn’t just a time for receiving but also for giving.

And
with that thought in mind I would like to give you all my best wishes for Christmas
and wish everyone a peaceful and prosperous 2002.

I’m
off for a short holiday and will be back with more local news in three weeks
time.